![Allison Brock, Laura Graves, Kasey Perry-Glass, and Steffen Peters (Shannon Brinkman Photo)](http://www.usefnetwork.com/images/articles/11422/oly16brinkman8-12djsa-1717.jpg)
Allison Brock, Laura Graves, Kasey Perry-Glass, and Steffen Peters (Shannon Brinkman Photo)
The third day of dressage team competition featured the top six teams and eight individual combinations from the first two days’ Grand Prix at the Deodoro Olympic Equestrian Center. Each team’s top three scores from both the Grand Prix and Grand Prix Special were averaged together to determine the team medals.
![Laura Graves and Verdades (Shannon Brinkman)](http://www.usefnetwork.com/images/articles/11421/oly16brinkman8-12dgps-1896.jpg)
Laura Graves and Verdades (Shannon Brinkman)
“We’ve captured the elusive 80% - it does exist!” said a thrilled Graves, who was one of only five riders to score above 80%. “I knew the test was going well, but you just always hope that your reflections match up with the judges. I had no idea going into the ring what I needed for a score and to see my teammates so happy and then to achieve my personal best score - and a score I’ve been reaching for - was just icing on our cake today.”
Peters (San Diego, Calif.), competing in his fourth Olympic Games, rode Legolas 92, a 14-year-old Westphalian gelding owned by Four Winds Farm. The pair held sixth place individually going into the Grand Prix Special and produced a superb test with one mistake coming at the beginning of the test in the left trot half-pass. The duo quickly recovered to produce a score of 74.622%.
“I’m super happy with Legolas. We delivered for the team, that was my goal and that’s what we did,” said a delighted Peters. “We had a couple of little fumbles – he lost his balance in the left half-pass which is uncharacteristic of him and we had a little delayed reaction into the first piaffe, but then he did it beautifully.”
![Steffen Peters and Legolas 92 (Shannon Brinkman Photo)](http://www.usefnetwork.com/images/articles/11423/oly16brinkman8-12dgps-1646.jpg)
Steffen Peters and Legolas 92 (Shannon Brinkman Photo)
“The rest of the test was very clean,” he continued. “He did his changes very nicely, but I knew that after the half-pass ‘fumble’ that if we had one more mistake in the flying changes then we’d be below the required average score to stay ahead of The Netherlands. I knew going into the ring exactly what score I had to get and I’m super happy that it worked out - but it was close!”
Olympic first-timers Brock (Loxahatchee, Fla.) and Rosevelt, a 14-year-old Hanoverian gelding owned by Claudine and Fritz Kundrun, were the trailblazers as the first U.S. pair to perform its test. The duo executed a solid and confident test, earning a score of 73.824% from the seven judges with many good highlights throughout, earning high marks their first extended trot, flying changes, and extended canter.
![Allison Brock and Rosevelt (Shannon Brinkman Photo)](http://www.usefnetwork.com/images/articles/11418/oly16brinkman8-12dgps-0714.jpg)
Allison Brock and Rosevelt (Shannon Brinkman Photo)
Second up for the U.S. was Perry-Glass (Orangevale, Calif.) and Diane Perry’s 13-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding, Dublet. The pair produced a fluid test in the Grand Prix Special with especially beautiful passage work. Unfortunately, the pair had a mistake from the passage into the extended trot, but quickly regrouped and completed with a respectable 73.235% in their first Olympic Games.
“It wasn’t our best, but you know I have to give it to Dublet as he’s really trying to stay with me,” said Perry-Glass. “We have a couple kinks to work out, but it’s our first year and we moved up very fast, so I have to give him credit on that for staying patient and really trusting me in the ring. My plan was just to give him a good experience and also I was thinking about the team. I really wanted to do
![Kasey Perry-Glass and Dublet (Shannon Brinkman Photo)](http://www.usefnetwork.com/images/articles/11419/oly16brinkman8-12dgps-1150.jpg)
Kasey Perry-Glass and Dublet (Shannon Brinkman Photo)
Reflecting on the Bronze medal win, Peters said, “First of all, a big thank you to Robert Dover [U.S. Dressage Chef d’Equipe], who was also on the team in 2004 [the last time the U.S. Dressage Team won a Team Olympic medal]. Today we knew it had to be above 75 percent and all four riders and horses are capable of delivering 76-77 percent, so we knew we had a chance, but when it actually happened it was amazing! If you wanted to see a 52-year-old guy acting like a 10-year-old boy, you should’ve seen me in the stands when Laura was coming down centerline – I was crying my eyes out and it was just one of those absolutely amazing experiences. There’s a lot of people who are certainly a big part of this medal.”
Final Team Standings
The top 18 competitors from the Grand Prix Special will now go on to compete in the Individual final, the Grand Prix Freestyle, on Monday. Only three athletes from each nation are eligible compete in the Freestyle, which ultimately decides the Olympic Champion. Graves, Peters, and Brock all qualified.
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